This is the way to describe the experience of Isaac and his teenage daughter at Christian Community Action’s Hillside Family Shelter (HFS).

 

With only a “very” part time position and a car payment, he lost his apartment and was forced to rely on friends for temporary housing. That arrangement did not work and, for six months, he and his daughter slept in his car and showered where they could.

 

By the time they came to HFS, he no longer had his vehicle. That was the moment when the doors began to open for him.

 

He had enrolled in skills training program and needed transportation to the program site. The bus tokens he receives, which are provided through Neighbor to Neighbor, make it possible for him to get to his classes. The tokens have also been used to keep appointments at his daughter’s school and to be an active parent in her educational process.  

 

The doors opened again, when he was accepted as an intern with a local non profit organization through CCA’s Program for Internships, Vocational Opportunities and Training (PIVOT). Not only did the bus tokens allow him to get to that organization, he was able to design his internship so that it would meet his training program practicum requirements. Even better, through PIVOT, he received a stipend.

 

If everything works out as planned, he will graduate from his training program, secure employment, and start his own business. He has already been accepted into our Stepping Stone Transitional Housing Program and, because of his motivation and hard work and our help, other doors are certain to open in the future.